tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-130079952024-03-19T03:02:14.407-07:00Rod's BlogRod & Angelika Ragsdale: activities and projects in West Africa as well as those in Europe and in North America, sometimes. Including periodic news and information on their whereabouts, whatabouts, and just about anything else one might want to know about them if one was so inclined... and some things you might rather not know!Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.comBlogger48125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-35086549621636267432011-08-05T23:45:00.004-07:002011-08-05T23:53:48.383-07:00Our latest news from GermanyRodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com97tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-35966100121023528772011-07-15T00:31:00.003-07:002011-07-15T04:50:04.139-07:00As many of you know,we have been in Germany since June 24th when we arrived from Côte d'Ivoire for a long needed break. One of the things I was able to do last week was to take off in a powered para-glider that a friend of ours has and fly for about 10 minutes. a para-glider is very similar to a parachute so there is a lot of crossover. However, running with a 60lbs motor on your back while Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-76972877416951055392010-10-05T00:01:00.001-07:002010-10-05T00:01:22.409-07:00Dedication of the Bible in Cebaara of KorhogoAs I sit here after 2 hours of speeches, songs, sermons and prayer I can't help but think of how faithful God has been to us and to the Senoufo people in allowing us to see this day. Just yesterday I was able to buy a case of Bibles fresh off the press for re-distribution to those we know who read this language. As we listened to Pastor Dossongomon read the list of all of those who have Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-7041376663915762062010-09-04T00:55:00.001-07:002010-09-04T00:55:44.296-07:00About Parties and PresidentsLast Sunday in churches all over Côte d'Ivoire the announcement was made that the Cebaara Bible Dedication planned for the 4th of September (this Saturday), had once again been postponed. It is because there has been a concerted effort on the part of some of the organizers that the President of Côte d'Ivoire be invited to the party. It was only last week that we learned of the &Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-61178981495417996052010-08-24T00:00:00.001-07:002010-08-24T00:00:13.439-07:002 Weeks and CountingLong before I was born and well into my adult life there has been a translation project taking place in northern Côte d'Ivoire which has come to an end. The translation part of the project has been over for several years now and the final manuscripts have been in the hands of the Alliance Biblique (United Bible Society) for several years now. Last January we were contacted concerning Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-29301831506359204262009-07-13T17:34:00.000-07:002009-07-13T17:26:39.341-07:00Just some of what's been happeningWe have been in the US a grand total of 3 weeks and we have been through 6 different western states, seen hundreds of friends and colleagues, eaten far more than what has been good for us, spent more money than we ever intended and yes, we are still married and even talking to each other. I have officially entered the 21st century I am told. I recently purchased a Blackberry which I am actually Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-12083630518273898472008-11-28T11:05:00.005-08:002008-11-28T11:17:09.291-08:00Es klopft bei Wanja in der NachtIn the German children’s story Es klopft bei Wanja in der Nacht, by Tilde Michels, we find Wanja sleeping warmly in his hunting cabin in the woods during a snow storm when he hears someone tapping on his door. He gets up to see who it is to find a hare freezing and asking to come in for the night. Wanja lets him in, puts some more wood in the stove and climbs back in bed. Not much later the hare Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-77081712660327699502008-09-10T09:02:00.003-07:002008-09-11T00:13:10.145-07:00Guests and ElectionsIt has been said that having guests in one's home is better than accumulating riches. If that is the case then we have become extremely wealthy in the last three months. As I sit here at the end of a very long and full summer of ministry and fellowship, I am beginning to believe this saying. During this summer we have hosted no less than 50 people, all but 4 spending at least one night and many Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-63952357513907127952008-08-23T08:03:00.000-07:002008-08-23T08:04:22.429-07:00Back in Bouaké... On the 2nd Attempt! Finally last night at about 17h30 I rolled into Bouaké where the roads were uncharacteristically free. Having spent too many days on the road it was good to get back to what we find familiar albeit frustrating at times. It seems that the rebels have accepted whatever it was that their chiefs have told them and they are once again going to let traffic flow after a fashion, normally. When Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-11898345707921325562008-08-23T07:02:00.000-07:002008-08-23T07:46:25.328-07:00Blocked at Bouaké Today I find myself once again in Korhogo after trying in vain last night to enter Bouaké. It would seem that the rebels in Bouaké are once again dissatisfied with the promised “payments” for laying down their arms and they have sealed off the city to all vehicles coming from either the north or the south.  Yesterday morning, after about two weeks on the Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-44950280220468003442008-08-19T03:12:00.005-07:002008-08-19T03:29:15.747-07:00Why I Think the War is OverBy now I would suspect that most of you reading this note have heard of my most recent bout with typhoid. It would seem that the rumors are accurate and that I am once again trying to get a clear bill of health. The last time I had this filthy disease was right at the beginning of the war in Côte d'Ivoire after our evacuation from Korhogo. Now that I am down again might be a sign that the war is Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-76682440046595518082008-08-19T02:21:00.002-07:002008-08-19T02:31:49.645-07:00The Sounds of the BatsThe comforting sounds of the fruit bats (Eidolon helvum) squabbling as they sort out their sleeping quarters for the day is a familiar sound to anyone living in this part of the world. All night these bats have been foraging throughout the country side looking for ripe bananas, mangoes, papayas, guavas, baobab flowers and numerous other sweet meats and flowers from which they gain the needed Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-14335625651073183622007-12-24T03:37:00.000-08:002007-12-24T03:51:19.529-08:00Tabaski and Christmas in BouakeWhat has Tabaski and Christmas in common you ask? Nothing really in my opinion. Also the market here and the supermarket in Europe and the US don’t have much in common. It’s only that both holidays are close together this year. Yesterday, I drove through our sheep market. I have never seen so many sheep in one place in my life. Actually it’s a big empty place here in the City of Bouake, where Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-7374598747159429582007-12-02T07:35:00.000-08:002007-12-03T02:15:59.304-08:00Our Three Week SagaWell it has been 6 weeks since leaving the land of round doorknobs, slow traffic and restaurants on every corner (the US for those who may not have had the “joy” of passing through that country). Since our return to Côte d'Ivoire we have made a trip to Parakou, Benin and part way back. And herein lays a story.Breakdown – #1Before leaving for Parakou 3 weeks ago, we had been to Korhogo twice to Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-66834077347504956322007-10-10T20:17:00.000-07:002007-10-10T20:43:14.872-07:00We Bought the Farm!Truth is a House!For the first time in my life I am in dept up to my ears. Today Angelika and I signed a contract to purchase a house from my folks. With Thomas Moore, the lawyer hired to write up the contract as well as both mom and dad, we sat and read through the document which states that I am indebted to them until the house is paid for. This is a big step for the two of us who live in a Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-74071465616082564322007-10-05T07:56:00.000-07:002007-10-05T13:29:30.275-07:00Wilderness WanderingsIt has now been 3 and ½ months since we set foot on this nation’s soil and it would seem that it is now time to get out of here. It has been an interesting few months filled with visits, phone calls, meetings, trips, fuel stations, restaurants, rain storms and sunny days. We have put over 5000 miles on our little Nissan Sentra and it is still rolling. We have hiked into some of the most beautifulRodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-69033155762552456412007-06-23T05:46:00.000-07:002007-06-23T06:04:30.058-07:00The Wild and Crazy Month of MayThe month of May came and went in a whirlwind which left me spinning. By the end of the month I had made three trips to Abidjan (5 hrs away), I had said goodbye to Angelika (as she flew off to Germany) and I had welcomed the 15th installment of the French LICORNE peacekeeping forces to our campus. Of course within the same month I tried to bring a close to a year of teaching at IBB (Bethel Bible Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-1167733265017373952007-01-02T02:18:00.000-08:002007-01-02T02:21:05.040-08:00Bonne Année 2007 !As 2007 begins I thought that it would be reasonable that I write down a few reflections and notions concerning the year gone by and this year coming. First thing on my mind is to thank God that my father is now home and doing quite well for a 72 year old man who has been sliced open twice in the past 6 months by doctors trying to get him to feeling better. We have spoken several times on the Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-1167206186873351632006-12-26T23:48:00.000-08:002006-12-27T05:04:03.286-08:00Christmas Eve 2006Written Christmas Eve, 2006 from Bouaké, Côte d'IvoireI am sitting here in Bouaké reminiscing just a bit this morning about my dad. We received a call from my mother this morning saying that dad was admitted to the hospital and had emergency surgery to remove an inflamed gallbladder. As many of you know my father has been on a 6 month course of chemotherapy due to colon cancer. Apparently a few Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-1163093235908825302006-11-09T09:21:00.000-08:002006-11-09T09:27:15.933-08:001633 to 17211633 to 1721As of the end of October Côte d'Ivoire is supposed to have had a new president according to the UN Security Counsel’s Resolution 1633 which has been, until the end of last month, the ambiguously worded document which permitted the actual president to remain in place as the actual president even though Côte d'Ivoire has had a UN named Prime Minister since last year at this time. In theRodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-1154454751015757342006-08-01T10:49:00.000-07:002006-08-01T11:17:09.046-07:00Excuses, excusesSo, what does one write after not having written for over 3 months? Maybe “Sorry” would be a good place to start. Excuses? You bet, I could start an entirely different blog listing those but I don’t think it would make for very interesting reading.Since our last entry we have hosted at least three other major groups here at the school, besides the French Military who we continue to provide Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-1148129478404513432006-05-20T05:38:00.000-07:002006-05-20T05:51:18.406-07:00Sepikaha Church StoryFor the past two weeks we have been running up and down the road to Sepikaha, a village outside of Tafiré in northern Côte d'Ivoire with a crew of 6 young men from Bethel College in Indiana, USA and a seventh from Canada who joined the Bethel crew for this trip. The reason for this visit was to roof a chapel that has been sitting for close to 12 years waiting for a roof. This chapel was the 6th Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-1145521349096826612006-04-20T01:06:00.000-07:002006-04-20T01:22:29.110-07:00He is Risen!Today is the big day! He is Risen, He is Risen indeed! This morning when we got up were just a little bit tired out from all of the activities leading up to this great day of Easter but as ever thankful for what it means to each of us to know that the King Lives!Being into the kingdom building stuff let me give you a run down on our more recent activities. Angelika has been running flat out for aRodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-1143186176702356542006-03-23T23:40:00.000-08:002006-03-23T23:42:56.733-08:00South Africa and Back AgainToday finds me sitting in the Java House in the Nairobi airport in Kenya waiting for our flight on across the continent and back to Abidjan. We have just spent 3 weeks in Johannesburg with family. We had the rare and exciting possibility be with my younger brother John and Carol his wife for the duration. They hosted not only us but my sister Carmel and Victor Madsen, her husband, and their four Rodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13007995.post-1141572689047102592006-03-05T07:29:00.000-08:002006-03-05T07:34:18.993-08:00ICA Reflectionsby Braden Mugg, ICA Grad 2001I must say that it was odd to come back and visit Cote d’Ivoire and ICA after having been gone for almost five years. Although the places that I knew as a child have remained very much the same, almost all of the people that I knew in those days are gone. Surprisingly, even with all of the changes, I was particularly struck by how much my visit reminded me of the timeRodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08970130821022764771noreply@blogger.com133